Chuck Klein
Outfielder · Career Stats, Hall of Fame Bio & Records (1928-1944)
Chuck Klein was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1928 to 1944 for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Chicago Cubs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, a span of 17 seasons. In 1,753 career games, he hit .320 with 2,076 hits, 300 home runs, and 1,201 RBI. Chuck Klein was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980 and was a 2-time All-Star, an MVP, and a Triple Crown. His career PIV — Baseball Data Hub's era-adjusted measure of offensive impact — is 32,687.
- AVG (Batting Average):
- Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
- HR (Home Runs):
- Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
- RBI (Runs Batted In):
- Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
- OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
- On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.
Data updated
- Position
- Outfielder
- Bats / Throws
- L / R
- Height / Weight
- 6'0" / 185 lb
- Died
- 3/28/1958 in Indianapolis, IN, USA
- MLB Debut
- 1928-07-30
- Last Game
- 1944-06-11
- Hall of Fame
- Inducted 1980 (BBWAA)
- Awards
- 2× All-Star · MVP · Triple Crown
Full name: Charles Herbert Klein
Career Batting Statistics
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,753 | 6,486 | 1,168 | 2,076 | 398 | 74 | 300 | 1,201 | 79 | 601 | 521 | .320 | .379 | .543 | .922 | 32,687 |
Career AVG .320 vs. league average .274 across their career seasons — +16.9% above league average.
Career OBP .379 vs. league average .339 across their career seasons — +11.8% above league average.
Career SLG .543 vs. league average .388 across their career seasons — +39.8% above league average.
Career OPS .922 vs. league average .727 across their career seasons — +26.8% above league average.
Season-by-Season Batting
Click a stat to plot it across every season.
| Year | Team | Lg | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | AVG | Lg AVG | Lg OBP | Lg SLG | Lg OPS | PIV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1928 | PHI | NL | 64 | 253 | 41 | 91 | 14 | 4 | 11 | 34 | 0 | 14 | 22 | .360 | .280 (+28%) | .342 (+15%) | .395 (+46%) | .737 (+32%) | 1384.3 |
| 1929 | PHI | NL | 149 | 616 | 126 | 219 | 45 | 6 | 43 | 145 | 5 | 54 | 61 | .356 | .289 (+23%) | .353 (+15%) | .415 (+58%) | .769 (+38%) | 4922.5 |
| 1930 | PHI | NL | 156 | 648 | 158 | 250 | 59 | 8 | 40 | 170 | 4 | 54 | 50 | .386 | .293 (+31%) | .354 (+23%) | .429 (+60%) | .784 (+43%) | 6079.6 |
| 1931 | PHI | NL | 148 | 594 | 121 | 200 | 34 | 10 | 31 | 121 | 7 | 59 | 49 | .337 | .276 (+22%) | .338 (+18%) | .388 (+50%) | .726 (+35%) | 4179.3 |
| 1932 | PHI | NL | 154 | 650 | 152 | 226 | 50 | 15 | 38 | 137 | 20 | 60 | 49 | .348 | .275 (+26%) | .335 (+20%) | .391 (+65%) | .726 (+44%) | 5724.4 |
| 1933 | PHI | NL | 152 | 606 | 101 | 223 | 44 | 7 | 28 | 120 | 15 | 56 | 36 | .368 | .270 (+36%) | .329 (+28%) | .377 (+60%) | .707 (+45%) | 5408.8 |
| 1934 | CHN | NL | 115 | 435 | 78 | 131 | 27 | 2 | 20 | 80 | 3 | 47 | 38 | .301 | .278 (+8%) | .340 (+9%) | .392 (+30%) | .733 (+20%) | 1729.3 |
| 1935 | CHN | NL | 119 | 434 | 71 | 127 | 14 | 4 | 21 | 73 | 4 | 41 | 42 | .293 | .279 (+5%) | .342 (+4%) | .399 (+22%) | .742 (+14%) | 1150.6 |
| 1936 | CHN | NL | 29 | 109 | 19 | 32 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 18 | 0 | 16 | 14 | .294 | .283 (+3%) | .349 (+10%) | .404 (+18%) | .753 (+14%) | 297.1 |
| 1936 | PHI | NL | 117 | 492 | 83 | 152 | 30 | 7 | 20 | 86 | 6 | 33 | 45 | .309 | .283 (+9%) | .349 (+1%) | .404 (+29%) | .753 (+16%) | 297.1 |
| 1937 | PHI | NL | 115 | 406 | 74 | 132 | 20 | 2 | 15 | 57 | 3 | 39 | 21 | .325 | .276 (+18%) | .342 (+13%) | .398 (+24%) | .740 (+19%) | 1547.3 |
| 1938 | PHI | NL | 129 | 458 | 53 | 113 | 22 | 2 | 8 | 61 | 7 | 38 | 30 | .247 | .272 (-10%) | .341 (-11%) | .392 (-9%) | .734 (-10%) | -790.0 |
| 1939 | PHI | NL | 25 | 47 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 10 | 4 | .191 | — | — | — | — | -51.0 |
| 1939 | PIT | NL | 85 | 270 | 37 | 81 | 16 | 4 | 11 | 47 | 1 | 26 | 17 | .300 | .274 (+9%) | .342 (+6%) | .393 (+30%) | .735 (+19%) | -51.0 |
| 1940 | PHI | NL | 116 | 354 | 39 | 77 | 16 | 2 | 7 | 37 | 2 | 44 | 30 | .218 | .267 (-19%) | .335 (-9%) | .387 (-14%) | .722 (-12%) | -653.1 |
| 1941 | PHI | NL | 50 | 73 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 6 | .123 | .262 (-53%) | .332 (-31%) | .373 (-56%) | .705 (-44%) | -493.8 |
| 1942 | PHI | NL | 14 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .071 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1943 | PHI | NL | 12 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | .100 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| 1944 | PHI | NL | 4 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .143 | — | — | — | — | 0.0 |
| Career · 19 seasons | 1,753 | 6,486 | 1,168 | 2,076 | 398 | 74 | 300 | 1,201 | 79 | 601 | 521 | .320 | — | — | — | — | 30,681 | ||
Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.
Game Log & Splits
View full game log (1753 games) →Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).
Batting — Home / Away
| Split | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 887 | 3291 | 661 | 1163 | 190 | 724 | .353 |
| Away | 866 | 3197 | 507 | 913 | 110 | 480 | .286 |
Last 10 Games — Batting
| Date | Tm | Opp | Res | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1944-06-11 | PHI | NY1 | L | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1944-06-04 | PHI | STL | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1944-05-26 | PHI | CHC | L | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1944-05-14 | PHI | STL | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1943-09-22 | PHI | CHC | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1943-09-19 | PHI | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1943-09-18 | PHI | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1943-09-16 | PHI | BSN | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1943-09-15 | PHI | NY1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1943-09-14 | PHI | NY1 | L | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Fielding Statistics
Career Fielding Totals by Position
| Position | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| OF | 1600 | 0 | 3250 | 194 | 135 | 39 |
Season-by-Season Fielding
| Year | Team | Pos | G | GS | PO | A | E | DP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1928 | PHI | OF | 63 | 0 | 128 | 7 | 3 | 0 |
| 1929 | PHI | OF | 149 | 0 | 321 | 18 | 12 | 3 |
| 1930 | PHI | OF | 156 | 0 | 362 | 44 | 17 | 10 |
| 1931 | PHI | OF | 148 | 0 | 292 | 13 | 9 | 0 |
| 1932 | PHI | OF | 154 | 0 | 331 | 29 | 15 | 3 |
| 1933 | PHI | OF | 152 | 0 | 339 | 21 | 5 | 5 |
| 1934 | CHN | OF | 110 | 0 | 222 | 6 | 9 | 2 |
| 1935 | CHN | OF | 111 | 0 | 215 | 11 | 10 | 7 |
| 1936 | CHN | OF | 29 | 0 | 63 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| 1936 | PHI | OF | 117 | 0 | 213 | 13 | 17 | 2 |
| 1937 | PHI | OF | 102 | 0 | 175 | 11 | 10 | 3 |
| 1938 | PHI | OF | 119 | 0 | 229 | 8 | 10 | 1 |
| 1939 | PHI | 1B | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1939 | PHI | OF | 11 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1939 | PIT | OF | 66 | 0 | 133 | 4 | 7 | 0 |
| 1940 | PHI | OF | 96 | 0 | 180 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 1941 | PHI | OF | 14 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1943 | PHI | OF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1944 | PHI | OF | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career Games by Position
Circle size = games played at each position.
| Position | Games |
|---|---|
| First Base | 1 |
| Left Field | 258 |
| Center Field | 46 |
| Right Field | 1307 |
Awards & Honors
| Year | Award | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1933 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | RF |
| 1933 | TSN All-Star | OF |
| 1933 | Triple Crown | |
| 1932 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | RF |
| 1932 | Most Valuable Player | |
| 1932 | TSN All-Star | OF |
| 1932 | TSN Guide MVP | |
| 1931 | Baseball Magazine All-Star | RF |
| 1931 | TSN Guide MVP |
Award Voting History
| Year | Award | League | Finish | Points Won | Points Max | Votes First |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 2nd | 48.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1932 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 1st | 78.0 | 80 | 6 |
| 1931 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 2nd | 55.0 | 80 | 0 |
| 1929 | Most Valuable Player | NL | 11th | 15.0 | 80 | 0 |
Most Similar Players
Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.
Chuck Klein (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.
Compare Chuck Klein
Chuck Klein: the record in brief
Between the debut on July 30, 1928 and the final game on June 11, 1944, Chuck Klein built the record summarized on this page. Club by club, the record runs the Philadelphia Phillies (1928 through 1942), the Chicago Cubs (1934 to 1936), the Pittsburgh Pirates (1939), and the Philadelphia Blue Jays (1943 through 1944). Klein played primarily as an outfielder and threw right-handed and batted left-handed. Born on October 7, 1904, in Indianapolis, IN, USA, Klein was listed at 6-foot-0 and 185 pounds. Klein's death is recorded on March 28, 1958, in Indianapolis, IN, USA. The given name on file is Charles Herbert Klein.
The batting record for Klein: 1,753 games, 2,076 hits in 6,486 at bats, and a .320 average; the totals also include 300 home runs, 1,201 RBI, and 79 stolen bases. On-base and slugging figures of .379 and .543 give Klein a career OPS of .922. Klein's .320 average ran 16.9% above the .274 that the league posted over the same seasons.
Frequently Asked Questions about Chuck Klein
- What years did Chuck Klein play?
- Chuck Klein played in Major League Baseball from 1928 to 1944.
- Was Chuck Klein a pitcher?
- No. Chuck Klein was a position player (Outfielder).
- How many home runs did Chuck Klein hit?
- Chuck Klein hit 300 career home runs with 2076 hits.
- Is Chuck Klein in the Hall of Fame?
- Yes. Chuck Klein was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980.
- What was Chuck Klein's career batting average?
- Chuck Klein batted .320 over his career, with 2,076 hits in 6,486 at bats.
- How many RBI did Chuck Klein have?
- Chuck Klein drove in 1,201 runs in his career.